Friday, May 1, 2009

1200 years ago the year was 809

"A huge kauri tree crashed to the ground this week in the Hakarimata Scenic Reserve, near Huntly.The tree was about 35 metres high, with a girth of 5.3 metres and estimated at between 1000 and 1200 years old."

"Mr Annandale said the tree would be left where it was, and nature would be allowed to take its course. Trees and vegetation in its path would "bounce back fairly quickly," and DOC may take core samples from the trunk to assess the extent of the rot.While the tree's death was from natural causes, Mr Annandale said it was still "a great loss for the department, and for the public"."At least nature took it it wasn't someone with a chainsaw," he said.The discovery of the fallen kauri comes in the same week as a public meeting was held in Hamilton to discuss kauri die-back, the result of an organism which is damaging kauri in Northland and Auckland."

Imagine what this land must have been like when the trees were still with us.